This is a feature called "Nothing is Better." I have a feature called "Reason to Get Excited," where I spotlight aspects of current comic books that have particularly impressed me. I had started to expand it to older comics, but it just didn't feel right. I really think "Reason to Get Excited" should be reserved for current comic books. Therefore, this is the equivalent column for older comic books, "Nothing is Better," where I spotlight aspects of classic comic books that have particularly impressed me.

I continue a month of "Nothing is Better" by spotlighting Christopher Priest and Denys Cowan's excellent revamp of Steel.

Christopher Priest and Denys Cowan's sadly short-lived run on Steel began with issue #34 and ended with the book's cancellation at #52.

But there was a lot of fun in those 19 issues!

The book opened with a dramatic status quo shift for the title. The status quo shift was that the title, which was about John Henry Irons (Steel) being a superhero in Washington D.C. while helping to take care of his extended family (his sister, his parents and his sister's kids) became a book about Steel in Jersey City with his most interesting family member - his niece, Natasha. Irons was now going to work in research and development at a medical group - developing medical equipment instead of weapons (and, of course, in signing him, Jersey City acquired its own resident superhero).

That first issue, #34, introduced a bunch of new characters, including Steel's new contact at the police department...

plus Irons' new boss, Dr. Villain (in one of the major recurring gags of the comic, it's pronounced Will-hane)...

plus, perhaps most importantly, Natasha's engaging new friend, who she dubs "Boris"...

when you add in Dr. Amanda Quick (an old friend of John's who convinced him to take the job - they begin to date) and another doctor on staff, Dennis Ellis, who is secretly a supervillain called Skorpio, then you got quite an intriguing supporting cast.

Issue #46 has a good sequence that I think highlights a lot of the great character interactions in the title. In the issue, Superboy shows up to woo Natasha. Steel takes him off on a mission to give him a hard time about his courtship of Natasha. Meanwhile, Amanda has slept with Dennis and he is trying to convince her that John is never going to have the time to treat her the way she deserves to be treated.

When you mix all of this together with some awesome action, courtesy of the great Denys Cowan (and the legendary Tom Palmer on inks), then you have quite a sequence...

Cowan, by the way, is stellar on this title. Not just great moody artwork, but he also did practically every issue! Tom Palmer was definitely a great help in both regards (the moodiness of the art as well as getting it out on a timely fashion, as Palmer is a fast worker).

This was a fun, offbeat but also often dark and serious book. Few comic book titles run the gamut of emotions like Steel did when Priest was writing it.

Sadly, the book ended at #52, but if there's ANY silver lining, it's that Priest's particular take on John Henry and Natasha has BASICALLY been the prevailing take on both of the characters, so that's something!

Okay, folks, this is a feature that is a BIT less conducive to suggestions (as it really is about stories that spoke to me, ya know?), but hey, feel free to still send suggestions in to brianc@cbr.com! Maybe you and I have the same take on things and I'll use your idea! Also, I have to fill a month of these, so it would probably help to have some extra ideas!